Passage 3

    Shopping habits in the United States have changed greatly in the last quarter of the 20th century. ___1___ in the 1900s most American towns and cities had a Main Street. Main Street was always in the heart of a town. This street was ___2___ on both sides with many various businesses. Here, shoppers walked into stores to look at all sorts of merchandise: clothing, furniture, hardware, groceries. ___3___ , some shops offered services. These shops included drugstores, restaurants, shoe repair stores, and barber or hairdressing shops. ___4___ in the 1950s, a change began to take place. Too many automobiles had crowded into Main Street while too few parking places were available to shoppers. Because the streets were crowded, merchants began to look with interest at the open spaces ___5___ the city limits. Open space is what their car-driving customers needed. And open space is what they got ___6___ the first shopping center was built. Shopping centers, or rather malls, started as a collection of small new stores ___7___ crowded city centers. Attracted by hundreds of free parking space, customers were drawn away from ___8___ areas to outlying malls. And the growing popularity of shopping centers led, in turn, to the building of bigger and better stocked stores. By the late 1970s, many shopping malls had almost developed into small cities themselves. In addition to providing the ___9___ of one stop shopping, malls were transformed into landscaped parks, ___10___ benches, fountains, and outdoor entertainment.

    1. A. As early as B. EarlyC. Early as D. Earlier

    2. A. built B. designed C. intended D. lined

    3. A. Apart from B. However C. In addition D. As well

    4. A. suddenly B. Abruptly C. Contrarily D. But

    5. A. over B. from C. out of D. outside

    6. A. when B. while C. since D. then

    7. A. out of B. away from C. next to D. near

    8. A. inner B. central C. shopping D. downtown

    9. A. cheapness B. readiness C. convenience D. handiness

    10. A. because ofB. and C. with D. provided